Today we’d like to introduce you to Gromyko Collins
Hi Gromyko, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born and raised here in Southern California. I’ve spent most of my life in Los Angeles, but my roots are in Mississippi. That’s where my parents and immediate family are from. My father, the late Ollie Collins Jr, moved my mother (Irma Collins) and my two brothers, Ollie III and Wade, to Los Angeles to pursue a better life in 1967. Years later while they were making a life for themselves here, my late sister Nakita and I came into the picture. One of my publishing companies is named in her memory, Nakita’s Publishing. My dad quickly became a pro, a dominant figure in the gospel world as a gospel artist, radio disc jockey, and concert promoter for most of the 1970s to the early ‘90s. I can recall playing on the steps of the Shrine Auditorium as a child, listening to my dad’s voice sing a song or call to the stage one of the next gospel greats of our time: Shirley Caesar, The Five Blind Boys, Al Green… you name it! I truly have some great childhood memories. I had no clue of the great legacy I was a part of. I just knew I liked it.
So when people ask: ‘Why do you want to play Marvin Gaye in the biopic?’ or ‘Why do you think this role is for you?’ I think about just how much I’ve identified with him on so many levels—musically, for sure. Then, doing the research and getting into character for various scenes that explore his life, I realized we had a lot more in common than not. Maybe I’ve instinctively just honed in on these things. A lot of what he stood for, I stand for. We share similar views and beliefs. Maybe it’s the fact that we’re Aries. Even as a kid growing up, I loved listening to his music, and when I was nineteen or twenty I said, if they ever do a movie about Marvin Gaye, I’m going to do it! That’s what I said.
It all started around 2019, a conversation with a friend who said that our mutual friend was going out for the role. I said, “Wow! OK! Man, if that’s the case, I wanna shoot my shot, too.” In this case, I knew as soon as I heard about the opportunity, I had to go for it. So, immediately I started plotting and planning for the role. Being in this industry for over thirty years, I’ve learned a few things. I have a great eye for what a professional product looks like, and I knew how I wanted to portray him. It was a special time for me. It was as if everything had led me to that moment. Things I just didn’t really think about or hadn’t even paid attention to flooded my mind. I took everything that I had harnessed—consciously and subconsciously—and put it all to work to make the six-minute short a reality. I just really resonate with his confidence, honesty, and transparency. It’s not a far stretch for me to think about becoming him for the biopic.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I already knew there would be some naysayers going into the role of Marvin Gaye for the biopic. Coming from the world of singing background in live performances for top artists in the game—like Britney Spears’ “The Onyx Hotel Tour” in 2004, and Usher’s “One Night Stand: Ladies Only Tour” in 2008, and his 2005 Grammy performance with the “King of Soul,” the late James Brown—I always had to audition, which requires a level of confidence and knowing that it was mine, and if not, there’d be another one. In this case, I knew when I heard about the role, I had to go hard or go home because no one knows me to be a serious actor, right? So, I had to put forth my best effort to produce a performance that would challenge the naysayers, modeled on the 1983 interview that Marvin Gaye did with Tom Joyner. I’ve been around great productions, and I know people in the game who do it every day. I was like, ‘Well, I’ve been exposed to it, so I might as well take what I know and apply it.’ I knew that that would be important to get them to the place of believing in and seeing me in the role of such an icon and legend as Marvin Gaye.
Even after doing the work, it’s been a challenge to get people to believe, especially the gatekeepers of Hollywood, whom I imagine saying, ‘Who sent you and said you’re the right person for this role?’ I am reminded that this process, however, is not for the faint of heart. When you think about all that went into the “What’s Going On” album, Marvin Gaye had to fight with Berry Gordy and the label to take him seriously. And, we’re still talking about the album, according to Rolling Stone’s greatest of 500 albums of all time to this day. There’s something to be said for taking a stand for what you know to be right and going against the odds. And you’ve got to do it. It’s necessary.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m an advocate for connecting the dots of the music and artist. There should be a marriage between the artist and the material the artist is singing. It’s one thing to just sing something, but to produce it to the point where the artist owns the thing they’re singing about is a whole other level. Luther Vandross is a great example of this. I had no idea that he was singing covers for much of his career because they were produced so well; he sang them so well, as if he had written them out of his personal experience. They sounded like his original piece of work.
When people listen to my latest work, “Love 2Nite,” inspired by my journey of becoming Marvin Gaye for the biopic, I hope they get an impactful, great experience whatever that looks like for them. I hope the music takes them on a journey—something to experience, not just to listen to. I think that’s pretty powerful, and I think that taps into the essence of who Marvin Gaye was and who I am as an artist. That’s how I measure success: If I’ve made a difference in their listening experience. I can’t say that music as a whole does that anymore. It’s a lot that goes into capturing a moment. If I’m able to do that with the things I create and the collaborations I’m a part of as a music producer, songwriter, actor, artist… that’s a meaningful and powerful thing. Frequencies matter. How certain sounds marry with other sounds to create a doorway or portal into another part of our existence or reality is something I think about when I’m creating music for myself or a client—from start to finish. Everyone in some way or another talks about love, pain—all the things, but I wanted to equate love to a kind of out-of-body experience. Love is so vast, and with this song, I wanted to equate it to the universe, and I believe the sound design best captures that. Like making a cake from scratch, “Love 2Nite” was made with love.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
For people who experience the six-minute reel of my Marvin Gaye performance and feel inspired to check out my other work, what matters most to me is that they feel inspired to do their great work, whatever that is. Whatever that looks like for them is what it’s really about. Everybody’s got their gifts. I would simply encourage them to take whatever they’ve been given and maximize it. Make it work! Make it count! When God has given you something to do, you’re going to have to encourage yourself a lot of the time. It’s the road less traveled that’s meant for you. As you elevate, you’ll meet different kinds of people on a similar journey, and hopefully they’ll inspire you. I would say, not to be afraid for your circle of friends and associates to get smaller and smaller. A sifting and weeding out if you will. My personal motto is: Less is more. Unfortunately, not everyone is willing to do the work to get where they want to go.
You have to take a minute to breathe, literally and symbolically. Marvin Gaye was very empathetic to the world’s plight. We don’t need to play a superhero. We have to just do our part. We can control how we respond to life. Just do what you can do, and the rest is up to God.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.wallportmediagroup.com/gromyko-collins
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gromyko/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gromyko.collins
- Twitter: https://x.com/gromykocollins
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/GromykoCollins
Image Credits
Images: Courtesy of G Studios Exclusive Creations
Photos by: Gromyko Collins
